Try to keep track of how much you are drinking
Suzy Bashford|Metro13 April 2012

News of George Best's relapse - a year after a controversial liver transplant and despite the use of drugs designed to react severely with alcohol - reveals how alcoholism is as much about psychology as it is about a physical addiction.

But can we hold ourselves up as paragons of abstinence? A night out with friends, a wedding: how many of us can imagine these without a glass of something intoxicating in hand?

If alcohol were invented today, it wouldn't be legal. That's the view of charity Alcohol Concern's head, Eric Appleby, whose organisation has just released new findings about the dangers of social drinking in Britain.

'Alcohol causes far more damage than drugs,' claims Appleby. 'The problems are huge and the figures are showing it.'

One in 13 people in Britain is dependent on alcohol - twice the number hooked on all other forms of drugs, including prescription drugs (one in 26).

Youthful excess


Perhaps the most alarming trend is that, compared with 30 years ago, alcohol-related illnesses appear to be affecting much younger age groups.

Take cirrhosis of the liver - there's been an eight-fold jump in cases in men and seven-fold in women among the 35 to 44-year-old age group.

'This disease always used to be found in those in their 50s but sufferers are getting younger,' says Appleby.

One of the main reasons is that people are settling down later. 'Whereas in the past people started drinking in their teens and settling down at around 21, now they start drinking earlier and don't settle until their 30s,' he says. 'The longer that period is, the greater the damage.'

Unlike with other drugs, it can be difficult to spot when social drinking's gone too far. What makes it worse is that the initial signs of over-drinking can be easily mixed up with common illnesses such as flu.

Last orders

There are several telltale signs. Alarm bells should ring if:

You regularly find yourself saying: 'I didn't eat last night because I went straight to the pub.'

Your drinking causes arguments with friends or family.

Your usual summary of a night out on the town starts with 'I was completely off my head' but you can't remember any detail because you blacked-out.

You drink to relax or relieve anxiety or depression.

If you recognise any of these scenarios, you should probably cut back a bit. But this doesn't mean you are doomed to a life of abstinence, or that irreversible damage has been done.

As Appleby says: 'A lot of alcohol related illnesses are reparable if you reduce your drinking. Just get it down to reasonable proportions.'

Alcohol Concern Tel: 0207 928 7377, www.alcoholconcern.org.uk, contact@alcoholconcern.org.uk

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